


I Think We Danced (But I Can't Be Sure)

by chansons_des_etoiles98



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Burning Rescue (Promare), Drunken Flirting, Drunken Kissing, Fluff, M/M, Slow Dancing, Sometimes you forget you kissed someone it happens to the best of us
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:33:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27813079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chansons_des_etoiles98/pseuds/chansons_des_etoiles98
Summary: Galo Thymos wakes up hazy and hungover after a blurry night of drunken revels. He has a vague memory of dancing with-- and? kissing?-- someone, but he doesn't remember who. The Burning Rescue team help him piece some things together, but he still feels there's something they aren't telling him... and he's going to find out what.
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Comments: 7
Kudos: 66





	I Think We Danced (But I Can't Be Sure)

**Author's Note:**

> I was inspired to write this because I had the song of the same name stuck in my head for DAYS and ended up envisioning this. It's by Rand and it's incredibly cute, so I'd highly recommend you check it out!

The first thing Galo registers when he groans and stretches and blinks himself awake is a splitting pain in his head. He rubs his temples, grumbling to himself at the too-harsh sunlight trickling in as he shuffles over to close the blinds, then drags himself into the kitchen. He sets up the coffee pot and pours a cup of water, trying to think back on the night before but finding only a hazy blur. Galo could probably count on one hand the number of times he’s been drunk enough to not remember entire chunks of an evening, but snippets of memories, voices and faces, swim in and out of his brain, blurry and just out of reach.

He sighs to himself, thinking. It had been a long few months of work for the Burning Rescue team and their new Burnish friends. The city had started to look more like home again, both for its longtime residents and for the Burnish, though they were still acclimating to the idea of having a permanent place to stay and not having to exist as refugees. Galo and his friends had been putting in a lot of hours, not just to fight fires now, but cleaning up the city, rebuilding, and focusing on housing efforts for the displaced Burnish. It was rewarding work, even if it could be tiring. So between a sense of satisfaction at the progress they’d been making and a need to blow off some steam, they decided to have a little celebration.

“Nothing crazy,” they had told themselves, though Galo wasn’t quite so sure of that now. He forces down some breakfast, takes a quick shower, and attempts to look better than he feels. And how he feels is like death warmed over. But duty calls, so Galo takes an ibuprofen, pulls on a shirt, and heads out the door.

He feels almost reassured to see a lot of his coworkers in similar shape. Remi wears dark sunglasses, and Aina visibly winces when Lucia knocks over a piece of scrap metal.

  
“Loud,” she mutters. “Too loud.” Lucia sighs a quick sorry, giving the other girl’s hand a little squeeze, but she looks almost as out of sorts.

  
“Galo! Almost surprised to see you in one piece,” Lucia teases.

  
“You and me both,” he mumbles. Varys smirks as he loads supplies onto a nearby truck.

  
“A little too much fun last night, Galo? You seemed to be having a very good time.” Aina hides a small giggle and Lucia smirks, but Galo just furrows his brow, rubbing his sore head.

  
“I guess so. I can barely remember anything.” The girls exchange surprised glances and Varys lets out a low whistle.

  
“I mean… Guess that makes sense,” Remi sighs. “You went shot for shot with Varys.”

  
“Yeah… That I kinda remember. Pretty much everything after is a blur.” Lucia raises her eyebrows again, studying him with a cryptic, unreadable expression.

  
“So… you don’t remember… anything. Just…. Blackout.”

  
“Um…” Galo’s face grows warm. It is a little embarrassing to think he got plastered like some stupid kid last night, but he’s genuinely drawing a blank. “No,” he sighs. I…. oh.”  
The other Burning Rescue members eye him expectantly and he scratches his head.  
“I… I almost feel like I… Did I dance with someone?” Aina and Lucia share another look— god, he hates when they do that— and Varys and Remi busy themselves with more of the building materials.

  
“Could be.” Remi shrugs. “I didn’t stay as late as you did, so I’m not much help.”  
He wanders off to help Varys, and Galo chews at his lip. He turns to face Aina and Lucia.

  
“Did…” his heart does a somersault, and he can feel the blush on his cheeks deepen. “Did I kiss someone last night?” Again, Aina’s eyes are steely and she presses her mouth into a firm line, studying Galo as if she’s deciding what to say.

  
“What do you remember?”

  
“I only remember little snippets, like some voices, music… but I have the feeling I, um… might have kissed someone at the party. And I don’t know who.”

  
“Ah.”

  
“Well, you hung around a lot with some of the Burnish,” Lucia supplies slowly. Galo isn’t sure if Aina gives her a warning look or if he’s imagining it. “Um… like, you know, Lio and his friends.”

  
“Hm.” Galo lets this sink in. “I don’t know if that gets me any further than where I started.” He pauses. “But it definitely wasn’t anyone from Burning Rescue then?”  
Aina shakes her head.

  
“I don’t think so, Galo.” She chuckles. “I have a feeling we would have brought it up right away if you had made out with someone from work.”

  
“And if someone from work had given you that,” Lucia smirks, pointing to a hickey peeping out from under the neck of his t-shirt. “I don’t think we’d plan to let you or them live it down.”

  
“Holy fuck,” he breathes, glancing down.  
The girls snicker and he sighs.

  
“Do you… I mean, had you talked to Lio and the other Burnish that night? Did any of them say anything?” Lucia wears that same shit-eating grin, like she knows something he doesn’t.

  
“Lio’s getting more comfortable around non-Burnish for sure, but he mostly talks to you, Galo. I’m not as… close to him as you are.”

  
“Oh.” Come to think of it, he supposes she has a point, though he doesn’t know why this makes his cheeks grow hot. “Lio just takes a little time to open up. He does like you guys, though.”

  
“Mm-hmm. And I’m sure he’ll get on great with the team once we really get to know him.” She bites back a small smile as she says this, almost as if waiting to see what Galo will say. The blue-haired man can’t help the smile that spreads across his face.

  
“You guys’ll love him! He’s quiet and all at first, but he’s really smart and interesting and kind and loyal and just a great person. I mean, he probably just feels comfortable with me cause we’ve spent the most time together. With fighting Kray and everything.” Lucia eyes him carefully, raising her eyebrows.

  
“Oh, I’m sure that’s why, Galo.” She pauses for a moment, picking through some circuitry on whatever she’s fixing. Then, she looks up. “He’s kinda hot, too, don’t you think?”

  
“I… What?”

  
“I _said_ , Lio’s also very good-looking, isn’t he?” Galo suddenly thinks it’s gotten very warm. Well, he’s got eyes, of course. He’s definitely noticed how attractive the other man is. Thought about it more than he’d ever admit to his colleagues. But he isn’t sure why Lucia would ask about it.

  
“In… In a manner of speaking, I mean… Yeah, he’s. Lio is… he’s, yeah, I guess he is, um… Lucia, aren’t you gay?” He finally splutters, and he’s sure he looks like an idiot.

  
“Yeah?” She shrugs, smirking. “Doesn’t mean I can’t acknowledge when someone is hot, though. Aina, isn’t Lio cute?” Aina laughs, cheeks turning pink as she shakes her head.

  
“Lucia, don’t tease him,” she murmurs.

  
“Anyway, you’ll just have to ask the others about everything when they get here.”

  
“Ask us about what?” Meis saunters over, his dark hair hanging loose over his shoulders. Gueira, as always, is at his side— “Those two are pretty much a package deal,” Lio had once joked fondly to Galo.

  
“Hey, Meis. We were just chatting with Galo about last night.”

  
“He doesn’t remember an awful lot,” Aina adds pointedly. Gueira’s eyebrows shoot up and Meis’s lips form a silent “oh.” Galo wonders, once again, what everyone knows that they aren’t telling him.

  
“Well, you were pretty hammered,” Gueira offers, as if this is something Galo didn’t know.

“The boss is still pretty hungover, too.” Galo’s brow furrows.

  
“Where is Lio?”

  
“Home,” Meis supplies. “He really wasn’t feeling great when he woke up. I don’t think he’s ever had that much to drink.” Galo tries to mask his disappointment, but his stomach sinks a little. He always looks forward to working with Lio.

  
“Oh.”  
“We were just talking about him,” Lucia tells the other Burnish. “Galo was saying what a great guy he is, and I was saying I can’t wait ‘til we get to know him more. Since he’s really the closest to Galo.”

  
“I hadn’t really noticed ‘til you said it,” Galo admits, and Meis chuckles.

  
“Oh, definitely. I don’t know if he would’ve offered our place for anyone else, but well… you had mentioned the team wanted to have a get-together, and suddenly…”

  
“Anything for Galo,” Gueira laughs. “Boss definitely has a soft spot for you, since you helped out so much with everything.” If Galo’s heart skips a beat at this, he elects to ignore it.

  
“Are you… sure? I mean, he must have told me I was an idiot a dozen times last night alone.”

  
“For Lio, that’s practically flirting. When he says ‘you’re an idiot,’ it really means ‘I want you to be my idiot.’” Gueira feigns a little swoon, fluttering his eyelashes for dramatic effect. Meis elbows him sharply in the ribs as Galo tries to piece this together.

  
“Ow!” Gueira shoots his partner a wounded look, but Meis simply ignores him, speaking to Galo as if nothing had happened.

  
“Don’t listen to him, Galo. I think for the boss, that’s almost a term of endearment, but maybe not so much as that. Means he thinks you’re all right.”

  
“Um…. Right. Okay.” He sucks in a breath. “Did… Did Lio and I dance last night?” It’s a stupid question, but he can’t bring himself to ask the other one out loud. He’d be lying if he said his mind hadn’t been preoccupied with Lio— and with Lio’s lips— ever since… ever since he had held him, kissed the promare desperately to his soft, pink, perfect mouth, the threat of losing him too sharp a pain to bear. If he hadn’t kissed anyone here, it cut down the possibilities greatly, and Galo wasn’t sure what to think if he had finally kissed the other boy again but hadn’t gotten to remember it.

  
“Yeah,” Meis laughs, jolting Galo from his thoughts. “I do think I saw you two dancing, now that you ask.” He pauses, then adds, “It was kinda sweet.”  
Galo’s mind was going a thousand miles a minute. He moves on autopilot for the rest of his shift, organizing supplies, patching torn down sections of downtown Promepolis, but for once, he isn’t thinking about his work. He’s only thinking of soft snatches of music, hands warm in his hair, on his waist… Lips on his neck. He supposes it helps that he’s visibly hungover, because Remi insists that he goes home early and gets some rest.

  
“Galo. We’ve got it covered. Go.”  
But he doesn’t go back to his place. He decides maybe it’s easy enough to drop by to see Lio— he can say he wanted to make sure his friend was feeling okay if he needs an excuse. He’s certain he knows the answer to his question now, but he’s scared to admit it. Memories return in flashes:

  
_“I love this song. Come on. Dance with me.” Lio’s cheeks are liquor-flushed and his smile is easy, a too-big grin stretched across his face as he grabs Galo’s hand and tugs him over closer to the radio. The taller boy trails along easily, studying Lio’s features— somehow sharp and delicate all once— in the low light._

  
_They sway to the music, both giggling, and Galo can feel how drunk he is as his feet follow his partner’s. Lio hums the words to the song under his breath, the same smile plastered to his face. His breath smells like liquor and his hair is messy, those little flyaway strands that Galo loves falling in his face. Before he even realizes he’s doing it, the firefighter brings his hand up to cradle Lio’s head, teasing the baby hairs at the back of his neck. The world feels warm and blurry, soft around the edges, no doubt from the number of drinks he’s had, and he’s vaguely aware when Lio giggles, mouthing at Galo’s neck, but it feels like a dream._

  
What does he even say when he gets to Lio’s place, he wonders?

  
“Hey, I think we slow danced last night, but did we also make out?”

  
“Hi, Lio, funny question: Did you and I spend half the night drunk and shamelessly necking in your kitchen while all our friends possibly watched? Asking for a friend.”  
He sighs, burying his hands in his pockets as he continues walking, losing himself in the flood of memories from the night before. Suddenly, the events themselves seem crystal-clear, even if the jumble of thoughts and feelings in Galo’s head are far from it.

  
_Lio is so close, so close, head resting on Galo’s chest. Can he hear Galo’s heartbeat? The taller boy prays it doesn’t sound too fast._  
_Lio’s hands wander: up and down Galo’s toned chest, resting against the sharp jut of his hips, grazing his ass, trailing light-as-a-feather up his back, and finally up to rest in his hair. The smaller boy’s eyes are wide, pupils dark, and his mouth pink and wet and perfect._

  
_**Stop staring at his mouth, dummy,** Galo chides himself._

  
_He presses a kiss to Lio’s hand, twirls him. Distracted, he stumbles or Lio does, and when they regain their balance, they’re smushed right up against each other, Lio splayed against Galo’s chest. The shorter man gazes, almost in wonder, up at Galo, a funny, hungry look in his eyes, and the firefighter has just opened his mouth to speak when—_  
_Lio’s fists bunch in the fabric of his t-shirt and his mouth presses hurriedly, sloppily to Galo’s._

  
_He tastes like liquor, like something else sweet that Galo can’t place._  
_The blue-haired man knows he’s off-balance, well past tipsy, and he makes a soft sound in the back of his throat, surprised but pleased._

  
_Everything is hazy._

  
_The soft light of the kitchen. Him and Lio giggling between kisses, allowing their hands to roam unabashedly like they’re a pair of horny teenagers._

  
_Hands under clothes._

  
_Hands in hair._

  
_Lio perched on the counter, sighing as Galo marks his neck up with hickeys. Every little sound he makes is music to Galo’s ears. He can’t pretend he’s never imagined what it would sound like to hear Lio sigh his name like that but, fuck, the real thing is so much better._

  
Galo gnaws on his lip nervously as he reaches Lio’s doorstep. Does Lio remember? He was pretty drunk, too. What does he think of Galo after last night?  
There’s only one way to find out, he supposes as he knocks.  
“Just a second!” Galo should’ve known he’d get himself into trouble the moment he met the other man, because even the sound of Lio’s voice on the other side of the door sends an electric current right down his body.

  
“Gueira I swear to god if you lose your key one more ti—” The door swings open, and Lio blinks, his cheeks going red. “Oh. I… sorry, I didn’t know it was you. Um. Clearly.” Galo laughs nervously.

  
“That’s um… that’s okay.”

  
“Uh… Come on in, I guess, yeah. Sorry, I’m kind of a mess today.”

  
“Yeah, I figured I’d come see how you’re feeling.” He glances around: Shades drawn, water, painkillers, and Gatorade on the coffee table. Ah.

  
“Not… my best, I’ll admit, but I finally managed to keep food down.”

  
“Mm. Little victories.” They settle onto the couch, and Galo pretends he isn’t hyperaware of Lio’s leg brushing his. After a moment, Lio shifts, studying him carefully.

  
“Is that the real reason you came over Galo?” Much as he admires Lio for never beating around the bush, he can’t help but feel nervous.

  
“No. Not the only reason anyway.” Lio nods.

  
“Last night?” He asks.

  
“Last night.”

  
“How… much do you remember?”

  
“A lot more now. You and I danced.” Lio nods, scanning Galo’s face. “And, um… we… well, we kissed, didn’t we.” He says this more like a statement than a question, and the expression on Lio’s face is difficult to read. His eyes stay trained on Galo’s.

  
“Yes.” His voice is barely above a whisper.

  
“And… I didn’t want to make assumptions about how you felt. But I actually… really liked it.” The other man’s mouth falls open ever so slightly, and Galo loves how pretty he is when he blushes.

  
“Meis…” He clears his throat and tries again. “Meis texted me that you didn’t really remember last night.”

  
“A lot of it came back to me as the day went on. I’m glad it did. I wouldn’t have wanted to forget something so wonderful.”

  
“Wonderful?” Lio’s eyes sparkle. Galo notices they’ve leaned closer and closer to each other. Their faces are inches from each other now and Galo feels himself holding his breath.

  
“Of course. I hope that’s not too forward.” Lio shakes his head rapidly.

  
“No, not at all. I mean… I’m the one who kissed you first. I was… well, I wasn’t sure to be scared of what you might think about it, or relieved or disappointed or what when you didn’t remember. I didn’t want to fuck things up.”

  
“God, no.” Suddenly, he can’t meet Lio’s eyes, but he forces out the next sentence before he loses his nerve. “I’ve thought about kissing you for ages, so I’m glad you made a move.”

  
“Yeah?”

  
“Of course. You’re incredible, Lio.” He can’t keep the smile out of his voice, and Lio simply beams in response.

  
“Galo…” The firefighter cups his cheek. Gently.

  
“May I?”

  
“Took you long enough. I thought you’d never ask.” Galo eyes him warily and Lio laughs. “That’s a _yes_ , dummy.”  
Galo nods breathlessly before tilting Lio’s chin up with his fingers, leaning in to press his mouth softly against the other boy’s.

This time, Lio tastes… not like ash. Not like alcohol. He tastes like Gatorade and chapstick. He’s not crumbling away in Galo’s arms, not a hazy memory to cling to desperately. He’s warm and real and wonderful. The kiss lasts a moment and a lifetime all at once and Galo thinks that maybe he feels even less sober than he did last night when he pulls back, eyes fluttering open to see Lio gazing right back at him, peering out from under those dark, perfect eyelashes. His smile is radiant.

  
“It’s about time we got one good, real kiss,” he murmurs, fingers carding fondly through Galo’s hair.

  
“Yeah, it’s a lot nicer when you aren’t, well… dying.”

  
“And when you’re sober enough to remember it.”

  
“Well, let me be the first to tell you… that wasn’t the alcohol last night. I’ve been dying to kiss you again for months.”  
Lio grins even wider, his voice still barely above a whisper when he speaks.

  
“Then don’t stop there.” Galo blushes and the smaller boy laughs, biting his lip as he tugs Galo in and sighing into the firefighter’s mouth. Galo gasps, moans softly as Lio’s tongue pushes into his mouth. He tugs at the other boy’s bottom lip with his teeth, buries his hands in soft, green hair. Lio whines in pleasure, climbing into Galo’s lap. When the two finally separate, Galo feels giddy, smiling like a fool at the flushed, rumpled Lio Fotia sitting on his lap.

  
“Hi,” he murmurs, tilting his forehead against Lio’s.

  
“Hi.”

  
“Is it too soon for ‘I love you?’” The other boy’s cheeks flush even redder and his eyes are huge as he murmurs back,

  
“Maybe. But tell me anyway?”

  
“Lio Fotia… I think I’m falling in love with you.” Lio cuddles closer and Galo can hear the smile in his voice when he answers.

  
“Then I think you’ll be glad to know you definitely aren’t falling alone.” He presses a soft kiss to Galo’s temple. “I love you, too.”  
They sit there like that for a while before Lio winces a bit.

  
“I’m still so hungover, though.”

  
“Yeah. Me too, honestly.”

  
“You wanna maybe… stay here and sleep it off together?” Galo brushes Lio’s hair back tenderly, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

  
“I’ll get us both some water. You go lie down.”  
Lio kisses him once, then twice, gratefully, hand grazing the taller boy’s cheek, before shuffling off to the bedroom.  
As Galo follows, he can hear the sound of Lio singing softly under his breath— the song they danced to the night before.

  
_“And as we kissed and said goodnight, a nightingale sang in Berkeley Square."_

  
The firefighter grins to himself, deciding that he can’t wait for many more dances— and many more kisses— to come.


End file.
